


It's Honesty

by ColorTeal



Series: Cliffjumper Lived AU [5]
Category: Transformers: Prime
Genre: Decepticons Becoming Neutrals, Sharing photos, starscream the neutral, weird/honest attempt at comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-05
Updated: 2015-02-05
Packaged: 2018-03-10 14:27:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3293771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ColorTeal/pseuds/ColorTeal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cliffjumper shares some pictures with Starscream, who drops some old information from when he led the Decepticons before Megatron's return.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“You didn’t spend that much time off the warship?” Cliff had managed to get Starscream into dropping some harmless information about Starscream’s time on Earth thus far. Everything was more about the Nemesis than the planet itself, driving Cliffjumper to his question.

“Why _would_ I?” Starscream snapped. “Have you _seen_ this planet?”

“I have, unlike you.” Cliffjumper chuckled, crossing his arms under his chest. “You should check out the place. It’s-”

“I’m going to stop you there and tell you “No” with the hopes you will listen to me.” Starscream was blunt, and monitoring the distance between himself and this overly-friendly autobot. “I’m not interested in this planet and its, its _dirt!_ ”

“Oh.” Dejected, Cliffjumper let his arms drop back down. “Well, if you don’t wanna go out, there’s other ways. C’mon, I’ll show you.”

“What.”

“I said show, not tell, Starscream. C’mon.”

* * *

 

“What is that?”

“A rainbow, we don’t get these on Cybertron, not in arches like this.”

“Why not?”

“Because Cybertron doesn’t have any water. It works like prism crystals. Except with water!”

“What else is there?”

Starscream had spent most of Cliffjumper’s slideshow of pictures of Earth bored. Dirt, rocks, disgusting… green stuff, dirt, dirt, more dirt. Until a unique rock formation caught Starscream so suddenly, he had jumped forward and pushed Cliff from the screen.

“Where did you get a picture of this mine?” He growled, checking the file for any more information it could provide.

“Um, Google? Or it could be one of Bee’s pictures.” Cliff adjusted, peering over Starscream’s shoulder. “That’s a mine?”

“I ordered Decepticon troops to patrol this mine for an entire year. There was so much easily unearthed energon, some even just on the surface!”

“Why didn’t you just take it?” Cliff backed up. “If it was so easy to get?”

“I was hoping you Autobots would find it, it was set up to be a trap for you.”

“Oh.”

“After a year, I gave up, ordered the energon to be harvested and moved on.” Starscream turned, red optics on Cliff. “I’m not surprised you _bumbling_ Autobots missed it.”

“Hey, tell that to Optimus, Arcee and I were the new bots around here til’ you came here.” Cliff squeezed himself back into arm’s reach of the keyboard. “And if it was as big a deposit as you’re claimin’, I doubt Arcee would have missed it.”

“Really.” Starscream rolled his optics.

“Yeah really. She’s really good at that sorta thing.” Cliff said. “And ‘Cee and I probably would have gone after the energon if we were here to find it. Or told Optimus we should go after it, since we’re always on rations and all that, a-”

“Wait.” Starscream straightened up, sputtering. “You mean you sometimes _tell Optimus_ to go after much-needed energon?”

Cliff shrugged. “The boss is usually pretty cautious. We skip anything that might be a trap if we aren’t hurtin’ for energon more than usual.”

“You’d really skip this much energon? We had enough fuel for a _month_ from this haul, your small band of heroes would have lived an _entire year_ on it!”

“If I was leading, I would have gone for it, Starscream.” Cliffjumper said, arms apart. “If it was that much energon I’d think it worth the risk, and we could just back out if it got a little wild. But… since it was a trap, it’s probably a good thing I’m not in command.”

Wings flick before they arch up, with Starscream mumbling a quiet “I was in command, before.”, followed with self-depreciation all the way from the console to the back hallway.

“Hey!” Cliff quickly closed down open programs on the computer before stomping after Starscream. “Hey! Don’t do that, you were doing fine, until buckethead came back.”

“You say that,” Starscream snarled, strongly enough to make the normally brave and brash Bot take a half-step back. “But you’ve been here long enough to know the Decepticons didn’t kill anyone while I was in charge!”

“You also didn’t lose anyone on your side under your command.” Cliffjumper put a big charcoal-colored hand on Starscream’s armor, onto to have the jet throw him off, with a halfway-redacted attempt to slash at him. “You didn’t suffer any losses and that counts for something, Starscream.”


	2. Chapter 2

Starscream froze suddenly, flinching wings stopped mid-motion and he slouched. Cliff stood in silence as the ex-Con slowly turned to peer over his own shoulder, optics huge in horror and mouth open in a mix of the same combined with disgust.

“... What?” Cliff asked, honestly confused and Starscream’s sudden change in reaction startling him.

“How can you _say_ that?!”

“Uh, Starscream I-”

“How can you say that about _me?_ You’re an autobot!” Starscream’s brow furrowed, making his face transform into wide-eyed anger. “To me, who tried to _kill you_ not even more than two months ago! To a Decepticon! To me! _Look at me!_ You know who I _am_ , right?!”

Cliff’s face dropped from startled to something more somber.

“I am, Starscream. I am looking at you.”

With nothing further from him, Starscream glanced around, flinching and glaring til it provoked further response.

“I know who you are Starscream. Traitorous, a murderer, a schemer, intelligent and a fearsome go-getter.” Cliff adjusted his stance. “The perfect Decepticon. But I also know,” He put a broad servo over his chest. “...Who I am. I’m an Autobot. And I wouldn’t be one if I didn’t believe everyone can change.”

Silence. Followed by a weak chuckle. From Starscream, before he bowed his head.

“Hey, I meant everything I said.”

“You Autobots are so… _weirdly_ noble.” Starscream looked back up. “It’s hard to take you seriously!”

“I meant it though!”

“Fine, fine.” Starscream waved dismissively at him. “I’ll take your word on that.”

 


End file.
